Key-words: Coronavirus disease 2019 - faculty development programs - online learning
Introduction
There is an immense need to improve the skills of curricula delivery by training medical
teachers. There arises the need to periodically train teachers through faculty development
programs (FDPs). FDPs in the field of medical education have been acknowledged as
an important component for the acquisition of skills for new faculty, for refinement
of skills, and for better delivery of the medical curriculum.[[1 ]] FDPs organized by the medical education unit are scheduled during working hours,
forcing faculty participants to compromise their clinical work during that time. In
addition, FDPs have a limited number of slots available, requiring additional resources
to duplicate the course to allow for the entirety of faculty to be trained.[[2 ]],[[3 ]],[[4 ]]
Owing to the emergence of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, as a part
of the response plan and in order to reduce the transmission of the infection, multiple
interventions have been taken by policymakers. One of these interventions has been
the closure of all educational institutions, including medical schools. This decision
has significantly impacted the curriculum delivery and the only way to restore the
education in these difficult times is through the conduction of online teaching–learning
and assessments.[[5 ]] However, not everyone can take online sessions, and there is an immense need to
organize online FDPs to make the faculty competent and thus subsequently pass on the
information to students.[[5 ]]
Online Faculty Development Programs: Scope and Need
Online Faculty Development Programs: Scope and Need
The implementation of online FDPs is a superior option for improving the skills of
medical educators. These programs expose faculty to the domain of e-learning, which
in itself is an important domain in medical education. Online FDPs have been linked
with multiple benefits, such as ameliorating accessibility issues that may arise from
geographical challenges. In addition, owing to the component of flexibility, participants
can learn at their own pace. This creates opportunity for faculty members who are
unable to participate in routine sessions due to excessive workload.[[2 ]],[[3 ]],[[4 ]]
Moreover, it is high time that the focus of administrators should be shifted toward
online FDPs as they are visually appealing, aid in obtaining comprehensive feedback,
and provide opportunities for reflections. Further, FDPs envisage reinforcement of
best practices, enable better communication, and aid in the development of leadership
qualities among the resource person and participants. Moreover, these FDPs are an
effective tool to ensure capacity building and warrant that participants develop control
over e-learning tools.[[3 ]],[[4 ]] In addition, online programs give opportunity for self-directed learning, introspection
of the faculty members, and neutralizing inhibitions; are cost-effective (such as
more number of faculty members can attend as per their convenience and it becomes
easy to store and retrieve the proceedings); and can be more appealing through periodic
assessment and feedbacks. In the long run, it can act as a strategy for better retention
of the faculty members in the institution as they can plan their own professional
growth and become lifelong learners.[[3 ]],[[4 ]],[[6 ]]
In the process of successful implementation of competency-based curriculum for the
medical undergraduate courses, online FDPs can significantly help in improving the
competence level of faculty members regardless of the geographical settings.[[1 ]],[[2 ]],[[4 ]] These online FDP sessions can aid in the planning, scheduling of timetables, and
implementation of the curriculum. In addition, the sessions will help in improving
the skills of faculty in mentoring and conducting educational research and improve
the art of giving feedback. Further, the faculty members can be more confident to
adopt different forms of teaching–learning methods and not only rely on didactic lectures.
A wide range of courses such as Advance Course in Medical Education, Foundation for
Advancement of International Medical Education and Research Fellowship, and a certificate
course by the National Programme on Technology-Enhanced Learning are available for
the benefit of faculty members.[[7 ]],[[8 ]]
In addition, different social media tools such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook, and
YouTube can be utilized for the conduction of various online FDPs to improve the cognitive,
skill, and communication domains of the faculty members.[[6 ]] Moreover, there are various apps available such as Kahoot, Quizziz, Poll Everywhere,
Google Forms, Google Classrooms, and Learning Management software, all of which can
significantly improve the learners' engagement.
Existing Challenges and Potential Solutions
Existing Challenges and Potential Solutions
Despite the presence of multiple merits which can be attributed to online FDPs, the
challenges linked with the smooth conduction of these online sessions need to be duly
acknowledged. The challenges include inexperience with technology, inadequate training
of faculty, lack of familiarity with online pedagogies, resistance from faculty members
to change, and involved infrastructure and costs.[[7 ]] These challenges can be tackled by providing technical and pedagogical assistance
to faculty members, which act as a strong motivating factor to attend the online FDP
sessions and implement the gained knowledge in the subsequent teaching– learning sessions.[[9 ]]
Even though online FDPs play an important role in improving the competence level of
faculty members, these programs cannot significantly aid in the process of classroom
management and develop punctuality and discipline among the staff members. Further,
the college administration should also encourage faculty members to participate in
a greater number of online FDPs to improve their professional competence and may consider
these courses for deciding their professional growth.[[6 ]],[[7 ]]
Role of Medical Education Units
Role of Medical Education Units
The medical education units of all the medical colleges have a defining role to play
in order to organize online FDPs. In fact, their role starts right from the time of
needs assessment, wherein efforts are taken to ascertain in which faculty members
of all departments need guidance and training. Accordingly, the medical education
unit does all the groundwork (viz., selection of appropriate date and convenient time,
formulation of learning objectives for the session, selection of the right resource
person, development of feedback form and pre- and posttest forms, and arrangement
of required logistics) and ensures that the participants are benefited the most.
The Medical Education Unit of Shri Sathya Sai Medical College and Research Institute,
a constituent unit of Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth, Puducherry, has been a dynamic unit and
has been actively involved in the process of capacity building via conduction of both
traditional and online FDPs. In fact, the Medical Education Unit organized a national-level
FDP-cum-Workshop on Application of Technology for Implementation of Competency-Based
Medical Education (CBME), wherein more than 250 faculty members from across the nation
registered and got benefited on the different aspects of online assessment in CBME.
The FDP-cum-Workshop received loads of positive feedback from the participants for
the content, hands-on demonstration, and the overall organization. In fact, we received
multiple inputs for the conduction of similar workshops for the benefit of faculty
members from those medical colleges, which are still in initial stages.
Conclusion
Online FDPs have the potential to enhance the skills and transform the effectiveness
of medical teachers in their teaching–learning sessions and in their professional
careers. Amidst the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it has become the need of the hour
to conduct a series of online FDPs and empower faculty members in the domains of teaching–learning,
assessment, research, curriculum planning, and evaluation.
